The First World War was to introduce many innovative and novel ways of killing the enemy. It was the first truly modern war fought with modern equipment, and for the first time the new-fangled aircraft were to play their part. Of the 57 nations involved in the First World War, only 14 had a naval air force of any description. The first aircraft were flimsy and fragile, but by late 1914 they had progressed from limited reconnaissance duties to an offensive role.

By the end of the war, aviation was an important element of the modern navy. The first aircraft carriers appeared and it was obvious that the days of the capital ship were coming to an end. The First Naval Air War is the story of the development of naval aviation from those fledgling squadrons of 1914 to the major weapon in the armoury of naval warfare in only five years.